Natural Predators
by Fae 206
Summary: In exchange for the gift to talk to animals, Denahi promises to spend sixty days alone in the wilderness to gain the gifts of the spirits. However, this journey isn't as easy as he thought. Thankfully he has one bear of a brother to help him through this quest but when Kenai is targeted by hunters can he protect his younger brother and can Kenai protect him?
1. Chapter 1 - Your Own Story

**AN:** I have to admit, and no offense to anyone, but I often felt scared about being judged for writing Disney-based stories but you know, a lot of them are really artistic with such a rich history. Although much different than my usual stories, I hope you enjoy this one. I hope to write for more Disney stories as well in the future.

This story takes place a few years following _Brother Bear_ it does not include the sequel.

…..

 **Natural Predators**

 **Chapter One: Your Own Story**

It had been two and a half years since Kenai had placed his hand – no paw on the wall to mark his print and prove his 'manhood'. It had been two and a quarter years since Denahi had last seen his younger brother. The loneliness and knowledge of being a lone wolf was setting in. He was meant to reflect on the loss of his family. He sat on the mountain and overlooked the nature below him. His arms were wrapped around his knees. This was where he had last seen his brothers in their human forms. This was where he had acknowledged that life would never be the same and he had to follow his totem.

It just felt lonely to him. He took deep breaths as he wrapped his arms around his knees as if he were a scared child. Sitka had always been there to comfort him when he knew he had made a mistake. He had always fooled around with Kenai when he had no other outlet than to exert this energy.

Now he was alone.

As he sat there, he was approached by a man that he didn't recognize from his own village and his heart beat painfully in his chest as he stood. "I'm warning you," he said as he looked at the man defensively, "Your village may think that I'm weak in my determination to leave the bears alone but that is _far_ from who I am."

"You feel that you are a warrior, but I have more knowledge than you do about the future, my boy," the man laughed and Denahi steadied his footing. He wasn't going to let anyone take advantage of him. He would protect the bears when he could but the most important bear to him was his brother who had chosen that lifestyle. He cared about Koda too but not to the extent of the bear who shared his blood.

"I feel that I don't have to listen to your analyzations," Denahi bit back as he looked at the man with the intensity that a wolf might possess.

"Your brother has tried to visit you in the past but a gentle bear makes a nice throw rug," the man said as Denahi's eyes narrowed and he struggled not to hit this stranger for attacking his family with such claims, "or at least the surrounding villages tend to think that."

"And what do you know about them?" Denahi whispered bitterly, "You dare to insult my brother again and I -"

"I know that your deepest wish is to see your brother again and to be able to talk to him again. If you follow my words and my plans for your future then I will bestow that gift upon you," the man said and Denahi laughed as he assumed a fighting position.

"You're a liar," he said as he spat onto the ground, "Get away from me _now_."

Denahi felt his body freeze as the man walked forward and touched his chest with one hand and his head with the other. Before Denahi could shake him off there was some type of light that he had felt within him.

"What have you done to me?" he growled as the man stepped back.

"You are to go on a journey where you will learn the magic needed to help your village and after that you will return and be given a special position within your community but first you must spend sixty days within nature to learn what you need to…" the man said and Denahi glared at him before hearing someone else close by.

"This will never do to climb up here. All the good food is gone. This is a waste of time," a voice said and Denahi spun around but froze as he saw a couple of raccoons. He saw their mouths move and heard the voices from in them. His eyes widened but he looked down at his arm where a tattoo was of a wolf facing a bear. Was this really happening?

"Human. There's a human up here," the second raccoon said and Denahi walked closer to them. He opened his mouth but the creatures had scurried away. He looked behind him to see the man had disappeared but his eyes caught onto an eagle soaring above him.

This was apparently the destiny that the spirits were giving him.

Okay, nature, sixty days, he could do this.

…

…..

Choosing an area next to the water, Denahi set up camp. Luxury wasn't important but he could at least have a tent and a blanket on which to sleep. He would have to follow the laws on the wilderness if he was to complete this journey that he had been told to go on. He looked up at the sky before going into the tent and drawing it closed.

Could animals stop talking? Being able to communicate with them all was giving him a little bit of a headache.

He soon closed his eyes as he fell asleep but managed to keep alert. The last thing that he wanted was to be attacked by some kind of animal.

…

…

" _Okay," Denahi smiled to the bear who was lying down next to him and watching the river. "I want to see you catch salmon, little brother," he laughed as he rubbed Kenai behind the ear. "How will I know that you'll be okay if I don't see you feed yourself."_

 _Kenai looked at him before giving a soft mutter and Denahi sighed._

" _You have to try at least," he said. Kenai had made sure that Denahi knew he understood human speak but Denahi didn't have a clue on what his precious brother was saying. "Come on, how long have you been a bear? Less than a month? Don't feel embarrassed, okay? We can try again."_

 _Kenai looked at him and rolled his eyes before approaching the river bank and putting his paw into the water hesitantly. He swiped down and scooped up a fish before throwing it on the ground behind him._

 _Denahi picked it up before going over to his brother and wrapping his arms around his shoulders as far as they could go. "Okay, maybe you're better than I thought," he said as he lost control of his strong offense and kissed Kenai on the head, getting fur in his mouth._

 _Kenai looked back at him with a smile before lightly pushing him backwards with his wet paw._

 _Denahi fell down, it didn't hurt at all and he saw Kenai looking over him with a smile. "Maybe you could teach me some of these bear things," he said, "I'm always willing to learn."_

 _He saw Kenai lay down next to him and Denahi rolled to the side and wrapped his arms around the bear, playing with his ear. "I still love you, little brother," he said and Kenai growled again before his eyes started sliding shut. "Okay," Denahi smiled, "You get some rest, I'll keep watch."_

…..

…..

"I'm telling you, back off!" a very familiar voice said and Denahi sat up. Kenai? He looked around to find that the tent was being surrounded by three much bigger bears. He had made a mistake in coming here. Why didn't he pick a cave or somewhere sensible. "This prey is mine. This hunter is mine. I found him first."

"You really think that you can take all of us on?" one of the bears said as Denahi watched the shadows.

"I'm not going to leave without trying. A bear has got to eat," he roared, "So back off! Leave!"

Denahi stood up, grabbing his hunting pikes. His eyes widened as he saw one of the other bears swipe at his brother's shadow. Was he really going to let them kill his baby brother in front of him?

Kenai backed away and entered the tent before looking at his brother. Denahi smiled faintly as he watched the bear and noticed that he had been injured. Kenai tried to wink at him, feeling that his brother wouldn't understand. There was something in his eyes which seemed to hint to the feeling that Denahi had forgotten about him. He would never forget his brother

Kenai approached him before pushing him down gently, making sure to pin him onto something soft which wouldn't injure his back. "Denahi," he growled, "I know you don't understand but you _have_ to play dead. If these bears thi-"

"I can understand you," Denahi said as Kenai's eyes widened.

"What?" he asked stunned before shaking his head, "We can discuss this later. You have to act dead, okay?" he pleaded. "I need to pick you up," he said before opening his mouth but managing to cover his teeth. "It might sting," he warned him before Denahi lay down and Kenai picked him up in his mouth. Glad that they were able to coordinate the effort so that Denahi was limp.

Denahi kept his eyes closed as he felt Kenai running through there were a few attacks on them. Denahi couldn't look back at his brother but he knew that he was using all his energy up to protect him. It took about ten minutes or so until Denahi was on the ground, hopefully for a good reason.

"They won't find us here," Kenai said as he looked around at the cave, "Most bears are scared to enter this cave. They say it's haunted," he tried to explain as he pushed Denahi with his nose. He saw his brother struggle to push himself up and Kenai used his head to provide balance and support for his human brother.

"You saved my life," Denahi said before looking at the injuries. He had slept with his pack on in case he needed to run and he knew that there were some medical supplies in there. "Your leg," Denahi said as he started to wrap some bandages around it.

"Well, what are brothers for," Kenai smiled before looking at him excitedly, "You said you could understand me?" he asked before looking down, "Do you mean you can understand the words I'm saying or - do you just understand the growls? You remember that much about me?" he asked and Denahi continued to see to the wounds.

"I went to the top of the mountain. I met someone, an older man, he made a deal with me so yes, I can understand all the words you're saying," he said as Kenai slumped forwards in exhaustion. "Are you okay? Tell me where it hurts, can you stand?" he asked and Kenai looked at him.

"I've really missed you, Denahi," he said with a sigh. "All of that running took a lot out of me but I'm okay. Thank you for cleaning my wounds," he said as Denahi sat beside him and let his hand run through his brother's fur.

"What are brothers for?" he asked, "And I've really missed you as well. Speaking of brothers where's -"

"Koda's doing well for himself. Impressing a lot of the female bears right now. I believe that everyone's been telling me it's mating season though it's…it's been difficult for me to mate," he said as Denahi laughed.

"So I don't get to hear the pitter patter of little paws," he teased. Denahi looked straight ahead of him as he thought about the man's words, "Kenai….if I had known about the villagers," he said his voice coated with sadness. "I thought you had moved on, I thought that you had forgotten about me."

"Hunters' traps," Kenai said sadly. "I was scared for my life and it's not just the other villagers, there are people within your village who want to harm me. They think that my true form left when I became a bear. I hoped that they weren't seeing the difference but after the initial shock had passed, they wanted me to keep away. I heard them say that I was after their children. Children who used to look up to me."

"I'm sorry, if I had known that you had tried to come then -" Denahi whispered before hearing Kenai give a soft growl as his eyes closed.

"We're together now, do me a favor and keep an eye open for me? You might be targeted by other bears but we both know how dangerous human can be against those of us in the animal kingdom."

"You get some rest, little brother," Denahi told him. "I'll talk to you when you wake up," he said as he gently ran his hand over Kenai's head and looked into the darkness.

Thank the spirits for his brother.

 **End of Chapter One**

 **Thank you so much for reading**


	2. Chapter 2 - Hand to Paw

**AN:** I'm so glad that people like this story. I want to create a good fic so I'm appreciative of all the support that I've been given. Thank you.

 **Chapter Two – Hand to Paw**

" _I'm going to bring back the biggest moose ever," the excited Kenai said as he threw his hands up in the air and followed his older brothers. He was going on his first ever hunt and this was something he had been talking about for such a long time. Some people might think at eight he was a little too young to be doing something like that but his eldest brother had encouraged it._

" _I'd like to see you try," Denahi said, "because that's my goal. I bet all you're going to get are some squirrels or maybe a raccoon." Denahi took a few steps towards Sitka, "He's going to ruin it for everyone isn't he," he sighed and Sitka sighed as he focused on his own weapons. "He's too young."_

" _Let him try," Sitka smiled, "I remember when I took somebody else out on their first hunt," he told his brother as he looked to the sky and tried to focus on navigation. "Besides, the probability of any of us getting anything as big as a moose isn't very high."_

" _I'd like to prove you wrong about that," Denahi said before looking at his younger brother. "Tell you what, you bag us something big enough for us all to eat and I will do your share of the cleaning for a year but if you don't then you do mine."_

" _Denahi," Sitka said slowly, eyeing his brother, but he was struck silent by seeing Kenai's excited smile._

" _Deal," the little boy said and so Sitka looked to the sky and exhaled with a shake of his head._

…..

…..

Denahi blinked as he woke up on something warm and furry. Where was he? He looked around at the cave and the realization of his trip set in. He pushed himself up off the warm body and looked to the bear who he had been using as a bed.

"Morning," Denahi heard as he tried to make himself more alert. He looked at his brother to find him gazing up at him. "Was wondering when you would be waking up," Kenai laughed as he rolled himself over. "It was getting a little uncomfortable with your weight on my side," he teased before walking over to the entrance of the cave.

Denahi sighed, "Well, waking up with a mouthful of fur wasn't what I really wanted to happen," he argued as he sat and just watched his brother. "And now you're leaving me? Well that's some hospitality for you," he teased as he kept an eye on his brother. Kenai went and pushed one of the rocks to the side before sniffing the ground and then stuck his nose into a hole. "Something in there?" Denahi asked before taking some deep breaths, "I'm talking to a bear, this is -"

"Excuse me," Kenai said as he looked back at his older brother with a role of his eyes, "did you just call me _a_ bear," he said before smiling, "At least call me, Mister Bear."

"So you really got formal," Denahi laughed, "and I was thinking that you never could get more refined in your manners," he stood before walking up to the hole and saw there to be fresh water there. He looked his brother over before seeing the bandages. "When you're finished, I want to check the wound on your leg. I can put some fresh bandages on which might -"

"I've had worse wounds," Kenai said before moving away from the water spot and licking his front paw. He looked around the cave. "We should probably move from this place, see what we can find from where you set up camp," he shook his head with a smile. "I'll show you my territory or…well mine and Koda's territory, you should be safe there."

Denahi sighed, "I should be travelling, I think that's what that man said."

Kenai sighed before picking up Denahi's pack in his mouth and tossing it to him, "There's nothing wrong with establishing a home base," he said as he looked back at his surviving family member. He looked at his paw before looking into his brother's eyes. "You think that I could accompany you on this journey? I mean, I'm not going to let you ride on me if that's what you're thinking, but company sounds nice."

"Company does sound nice," Denahi smiled, "Thank you."

"Even though I'm a bear," Kenai commented and Denahi went over to ruffle the fur on the top of his head and flick his ear a little.

"Even if you're a bear, you'll always be my baby brother," he teased him feeling extremely grateful that they could communicate again.

…..

…..

"So," Denahi said as he looked at what the two of them had been able to rescue from the mistake he had made the previous night. "This is where you live?" he asked as he looked at the cave and heard the water trickling nearby. He looked to the wall to see a lot of bear prints similar to the hands that were printed in the village.

"This is home sweet home," Kenai said as he went over to a rock and rolled it to the side to show some plants and fruits as well as some fish. He put his head down as he began to eat, "You're welcome to take what you want," he said with his mouth half full and Denahi took a step back.

"Sure, I'll get right on that," he said as Kenai rolled his eyes and shook his head with a soft laugh.

"You know, if you were a bear you'd consider this a luxury," he pointed out and saw Denahi smiling to himself as he just watched his younger brother. "You know, if you get turned into a wolf then I hope you don't get a hunger to eat bear. There are -"

"There are what?" an excited voice asked as Denahi was about to reply. The human sat down on a rock, trying to observe the situation. "Ugh…Kenai, how come I can smell…" the other bear said as he sniffed the air and Denahi smiled at how big the bear he assumed Koda was.

"I brought my brother to visit," Kenai said as Koda rolled his eyes.

"And there I was thinking that you considered me an equal when making aaall of your decisions," Koda emphasized. "Instead you go roaming off into the wilderness and come back with your bro-" he paused mid-sentence before looking back at Denahi. "Yeah, your brother."

"You are both my brothers," Kenai said in a matter of fact voice. "Apparently he has to do some soul searching or something."

"And you thought the best thing for you to do was to bring him soul searching around a bunch of bears. I was going to bring some lady bear back here tonight and show them our pad but I wouldn't do that if she's going to get scared off by some human," Koda argued and went to the wall to stretch.

"Is it Roxy?" Kenai asked before going over to Denahi, "Koda, you have your guests and I have mine and besides, Denahi isn't a bear killer."

"How's Roxy supposed to know that," Koda argued.

Denahi stood up and put his hands up in defense, "I promise that I don't mean any harm to you or any other bears here. I am only here to spend time with Kenai. I'm not going to do any harm so it's okay. I'd prefer not to be around too many bears anyway."

"Oookay," Koda said as he stared wide-eyed at Denahi, "Kenai, how is your brother speaking to us? This is reeeally kind of creepy," he said as he took a few steps back and the older bear turned to look at him.

"You know my brother who turned me into a bear," he attempted to explain, "well I think that he might be responsible for him understanding us now. I haven't seen him for a long time, Koda, I'd appreciate it if you two at least tried to get along for my benefit."

"Well that's cool," Koda shrugged before approaching Denahi, "So, what is it? Some type of spell? They always talk about spells when it comes to the mountain with the lights, all this weird spiritual energy or something like that," the younger bear said as he sat down and made waving motions with his front paws. "I mean, I'd love to have some spell that could make me turn invisible or where I could find all the good food and the stickiest trees and maybe I could find a spell that would give me super strength or some kind of vision where I can see through rocks and spot prey."

"You really do talk a lot," Denahi commented as Kenai nodded from behind the younger bear. "You look healthy, I mean, I'm not exactly sure how bears are supposed to look but you look….uh, strong with good teeth?"

"Well, my teeth are some of my best assets," Koda said with a shrug of his shoulders, "and I was talking to Kenai the other week about how I can't tell how humans are and you don't look too bad, I mean you get some bonus points because you're not holding a weapon and I always think that when humans are holding a weapon and their faces are all screwed up like this," Koda put his front paws to his face as he attempted to make an impression of an angry hunter.

Kenai rolled his eyes again and approached his two family members, "Koda, what I wanted to tell you is that I'm not going to be around here for maybe a month or so. I've decided to accompany my brother on his journey, keep an eye out for him. Are you going to be okay if I leave?"

"You mean, am I going to be okay without your snoring and your not being particularly hospitable around those bears who only want to compliment you and mate with you. Well…." Koda hummed before smiling, "Yeah, I think I'll be okay."

"I'll take care of him," Denahi said as he ruffled Kenai's head again, "It's nice to finally be able to talk to you."

"Yeah, you too," Koda said before looking at him, "but you get Kenai into any trouble or he's hurt and his body is all bleeding and he gets targeted by people from your village. If you hurt my big brother then I'm going to come after you for some answers."

"Trust me," Denahi said, "I would never want to endanger my little brother," he promised as he and Koda shared a look of acknowledgment in the other's character and then nodded. Denahi took a step forward and held out his hand as Koda lifted his paw and they put them together. "I promise that I'll take care of him," the human said as his trust and dedication to his brother shone in his eyes, undeniably so.

 **End of Chapter Two**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Thank you, reviewers of Chapter One**

AnimalGrrl101, Gothic girl, Musqux, Writer65


	3. Chapter 3 - Killers

**AN:** Thank you for your patience, hope you enjoy this chapter.

 **Chapter Three - Killers**

"If we're going a long way," Denahi thought aloud as he and Kenai walked across an empty road, Kenai feeling a little exposed because of the lack of greenery or even rocks but he was determined to not show his fear to his older brother, "Then we'll probably need supplies."

"You mean _go_ _into_ another village?" Kenai asked with a shiver as he thought about what tribes were nearby. Even heading into the one he had once called his own had been dangerous and he had tried that to see Denahi. Otherwise he had made it on his own and he was still convinced that he could make it on his own, survive on his own.

"Just to get some of the supplies, barter a bit," Denahi shrugged as if the idea was nothing to him and he heard his bear-brothers' breathing get weaker and both inhale and exhale a little bit longer each time. "Kenai, are you sure you're going to be okay."

"Yeah," Kenai laughed weakly, his voice having that growling effect that made Denahi pause, "You know just feeling a little anxious because of the hunters that are in each tribe, the fact that they will use bear hide as rugs and blankets and will eat the meat. Yeah, nothing to worry about."

Denahi froze and slapped a hand over his face, he hadn't been thinking and he felt so inconsiderate. "Let's come up with another plan," he said before ruffling the top of Kenai's head, pushing his ears down a little. "Sorry about that, little brother," he said before looking around. "We'll need to figure out what we need, maybe steal from some other people," he laughed.

"As long as it doesn't have the chance of me becoming a throw rug," Kenai replied as he caught the smell of something, some kind of injured animal. He looked around and felt his body get stiff. He could at least get them something to eat. "Be very quiet, I'm going to grab us some food," he said before walking over to where there was a large rock. He froze. A lone buffalo.

Buffalo were always so hard to kill alone. If there were two then they would generally pose a challenge to him as he wasn't the best bear out there. However, just one seemed like an easy lunch. He bent down and examined it. He could kill this one and provide his brother with fresh meat, that's what Denahi would want, right?

He took a calming breath in before running forward and launching himself onto the beast. He avoided the animal's frightened attempts to get away but he had brought it down to the ground. With one paw atop its throat, he bent down and bit hard enough to make the animal yell in pain and then die. He stepped back, growling a little as he pushed the body out as best he could. He turned back to Denahi who was looking at him truly horrified.

Kenai's expression dropped, this was the first time that Denahi had seen him kill anything as a bear.

Denahi nervously stepped forward. He had known his younger brother to be reckless and somewhat aggressive in his mind but seeing him tackle the buffalo and then slaughter it really made him uneasy. It wasn't as if he were watching his younger brother but as if he truly were looking at an animal. He had to say that he was impressed by the fighting style but he was shocked in his heart that he had lost the view of this bear as his little brother.

He had just seen him as a bear.

"Denahi?" Kenai asked as he looked at the man and backed away, seeming to be ashamed by what he had just done and showing this animal nature in front of his brother. He had wanted for them to be a family and now he was scared of rejection. He just hoped that his brother remembered their childhood and how they had been human together at one point.

"I'm really sorry," Kenai continued to apologize as he stepped away from the dead animal. "I really…"

"No, it's fine," Denahi said as he took out a knife from his bag. "Just…powerful, you do things differently from how you used to," he said as he started to cut up the buffalo, separating it as they had been taught to do when young adults. He tore the skin off and managed to cut some meat as well. He would need a fire in order to cook this.

"Well, yeah," Kenai laughed, "I'm a bear. I haven't used a human method of doing things for a pretty long time. No apposable thumbs so I've had to adapt," he joked and Denahi nodded. "I still have a bit of humanity in my heart and my head though but yeah, I've had to adapt."

"You think you know how to make a fire out here?" Denahi asked as he looked for clues of what to do next. He took out some cloth from his bag and started to wrap up the meat he was taking off of the animal. Soon it would start to smell and might even lead to other animals finding them. He would have to take care of it soon but he didn't fancy eating it raw.

Kenai on the other hand didn't seem to mind as the blood splashed onto his nose and some of it went into his fur, getting his coat sticky. Well, bears would be bears.

"Come on," Denahi gestured to where there was a small crack with water which must lead to a bigger waterbed, "You're a mess," he teased and Kenai smiled. At least his brother hadn't cast him out for being just an animal.

…

…..

" _Why won't you tell me, Denahi" a young Kenai said as he grabbed onto his brother's arm, Sitka was watching them squabble with a smile over his face just enjoying the moments of being with his family. Denahi pulled away with a grin._

" _I'm not telling you, you'll have to figure out the secret and special meaning for yourself," he laughed and Kenai frowned getting upset over yet another secret being kept from him. It was true, everyone would tell him that he had to get older and when he was older he'd know all of the secrets. Why wouldn't they tell him now. He wanted to know now._

" _Why?" Kenai asked again, "You're so mean."_

" _Figure it out, I'm not going to help you," Denahi laughed and Kenai frowned, pouting as he sat down on the dusty ground._

" _No fair. You never help me anyway," he complained and Denahi chuckled._

" _Yeah because helping you would just slow me down," he said before Sitka approached the two of them placing a hand on the shoulder of each of his little brother's._

…..

…..

Denahi smiled as he woke up in the middle of the night. He had been able to construct a shelter for himself and although it wasn't a proper tent, it had provided for him a calming place to spend the night. He had been able to get some sleep and he believed that the fact that his little brother was just outside was giving him enough happiness to endure his journey.

Right at that moment though, he was worried that this might not be a comfortable situation for Kenai. "Hey, little bro?" he called out and didn't receive a response. That was strange but then bears did tend to hibernate, they were probably very heavy sleepers. He shouldn't take it as anything to be worried about.

Denahi stood up, walking to the exit of his shelter and his eyes widened as he saw four men with ropes and Kenai with a muzzle over his mouth and ropes lassoed around each of his legs. This was very bad.

Getting to the muzzle, Denahi could only hear Kenai growl and roar, his jaw was too restrained for him to talk and just hearing the agonies of pain was making Denahi's heart twist painfully in his stomach.

"Oh god, I'm so sorry little brother," he apologized before trying to rip it off, the four men staring at him as if he had completely lost his mind. "This is _my_ bear," Denahi told them as one of the men from a nearby tribal community stepped forward.

"The bear has been claimed by me," he told Denahi, "You may thank me with your life, the bear would have -" Denahi didn't want to hear any more of this. These people wouldn't understand and he didn't have the time to force them to understand. All he knew was that his baby brother was being hurt by them. Picking up a stick, he whacked the man by the shoulders until he let go of one of the ropes.

"This is _my_ bear," he said as he heard Kenai's heavy and fearful growls.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Denahi heard a voice from behind him. Then he felt it, something strike the back of his head and he fell down into the dirt.

….

…

"So, you're finally waking up," an older lady smiled as she moved the bag of ice from Denahi's head. "I heard that my son's found you a little shaken up. They alerted the tribe to get your medicine," she said and Denahi looked at her. He sat up and stared around at the tent that he was in. Where was he? What was going on here?

"The bear," Denahi said quickly, his stomach was paining him. He wouldn't be able to cope if something had happened to Kenai because of him. He was supposed to take care of his younger brother and protect him. He wouldn't be able to feel calm until he knew he was safe.

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that, must have scared you a lot," the woman said. "We have the bear's hide hanging outside if you want to see."

Denahi stared at her as if she were crazy and then got to his feet.

Sure enough, when he exited the tent he saw that a bear's skin was hanging on a rope a short distance from him and Denahi felt his world shatter around him. Please, no.

 **End of Chapter Three**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Two**

Almondbutter, Gothic girl, only-some-loser, Writer65


	4. Chapter 4 - Brothers of Different Nature

**AN: I admit that this is actually somewhat of a weak chapter but I hope you still like it**

 **Chapter Four – Brothers of Different Natures**

Denahi stared in horror at the bear pelt as it hung up on the rope, he felt the ground pulling away from him and a cold chill run down his back. He didn't want to get too close to it. He wanted to believe that it wasn't Kenai and that he had somehow escaped but the facts weren't lining up in his head. Denahi slowly walked over to the skin and then pulled back. He didn't want to get any closer.

He had put his brother in trouble by talking him into going on this spiritual journey with him and now Kenai had been skinned and killed and hopefully not in that order. He felt so nauseous, he had to throw up or find somewhere to do it.

"Is everything okay?" a woman asked as she came up to him and Denahi shook his head.

How was he going to tell them not to hunt bears? In these communities, bears were seen as a source of protein and warmth, the sustainability of their tribe included the slaying of bears but…Denahi couldn't help but see himself as a complete failure of a brother. He couldn't do this without his kid brother and he would apologize for any moment where he bullied or teased or -"

"It's shocking really," he heard Kenai say and his body seemed to freeze. Was he imagining things? Would they have let a bear live with another hanging up there?

"Kenai?" Denahi whispered as he felt the pain in his chest. What was he thinking? Kenai would be safe outside of this village, why were they letting him…he took a step back and felt himself crash into someone else. Okay, the voices were in his head. He had to move, he felt that he was about to faint and then the man grabbed him and Denahi tried to figure out his next move.

"Calm down, okay?" he heard Kenai say and he looked at the bear skin that was flapping in the wind, "I don't get it myself, it's a blur to me and I really would prefer for it not to be this way but Denahi, turn around and look at me and try not to make any extra noise," he said and Denahi shook his head trying to get the memories out.

He had lost his mind but he did what he was asked and he turned to see Kenai standing there, the human Kenai. Denahi felt his stomach turn back to normal and his heart paused as he wrapped his arms around his brother who was wearing some clothes that the tribe had given him. He started shaking as Kenai hugged him back.

"I thought you were," Denahi said in relief, he felt a few tears in his eyes and pushed Kenai back, "Don't scare me like that," he said as he pushed him and Kenai dropped to the ground.

"Still not used to being human," he admitted and Denahi started laughing, it felt so good to know that your younger brother was alive. He looked around and then crouched down, "Let's get out of here, okay? You have no idea how relieved I am to see your less attractive self. I mean, are you going to turn into a bear because you are better at getting food that way or is this your spirit."

"Until nightfall," Kenai said. He closed his eyes and dropped his head to his chest, "I knew that bear," he told Denahi who opened his mouth but closed it when he didn't know how to react. "I mean, it's not as if we were great friends or anything but it hurts to see what man does to the kill. To just put it up like that, these…humans are just…they have no respect for the natural world."

Denahi paused, as glad as he was that he was able to spend time with his little brother it didn't stop the fact that Kenai used to be human and he used to do these things too, in fact more than himself or Sitka, Kenai loved the idea of hunting for sport. That wasn't something that Denahi believed in any longer, not when his little brother was a bear. If you had to kill an animal there had to be a reason for it.

"You've definitely changed," Kenai said, "Isn't this about the time you start arguing with me, teasing me about…about something?"

"If you want," Denahi said, "I mean, I could tell you that you seem to be using that body about as well as an infant oh bear of love but I think I have changed. I've had to be by myself more. Unless you…want me to bully you," he smiled and then looked around. "Maybe I could find something to take with us, we have to get out of here soon because we know where they stand on the killing of bears," he said and Kenai nodded.

"And I know of bears who hunt humans for sport, it's a…what do you call that, a symbiotic relationship?" he asked and Denahi shrugged. Kenai sighed and looked away from him, "Denahi, listen to me when I say I mean no offense by this but I don't see any reason to stay human. I don't understand humans anymore. I…my mind seems to not…argh, I'm not making any sense am I?" he asked and Denahi sighed and crouched down beside him.

"You're making plenty of sense, Kenai," he admitted. "You value your life as a bear more than your past as a human. It's somewhere that I can never cross into."

"And yet you are one of the parts of my life that I consider with the most importance," Kenai said as he made eye contact with his older brother. "Call me the bear of love but I care deeply for my two brothers. It would hurt me if anything were to ever happen to them."

"Well," Denahi said, "You do sound like Mr. Loooove," he teased but from his expression Kenai knew how much those words meant to him and that he returned them. "Anyway, I'm sick of just waiting around here, I'm going to get us some things to take with us. Maybe I can fashion something that you can carry for me," he said and Kenai rolled his eyes.

"Sure," he nodded, "I'm going to grab some things as well but I'll gather what we need from nature."

…

…

Denahi sighed as he looked around the market, the words that Kenai had said were repeating themselves in his mind and as he looked at the different meat selections that people were trading, he felt very ill. He didn't want to become a vegetarian and Kenai wasn't going to do that himself but what was the difference between eating a bear and eating another animal. No, he wasn't going to let that cloud his mind.

His brother had forgotten what it was to be human, the enjoyment that came from being human and experiencing the life style of a human, that's all it was, it wasn't that he preferred being a bear. Denahi shook his head before he turned to leave, bumping into a young woman as he did so. He smiled to her and then looked around, maybe he could flirt with her, he was a young man after all. He had his human instincts to follow.

"Hello, it was nice…bumping into you," he said and the woman raised an eyebrow.

"Was it?" she asked, "it must be because you keep doing it," she said as she tried again to get around him and he blocked her pathway. She rolled her eyes.

"Well, how about we get a little more…intimate?" he asked and she paused before pointing to where they could still see the bear.

"You're looking at the woman who skinned that," she said and Denahi looked at her confused, "that shows you how tough I am. I'm not one of those women that you should feel any need to protect. I'm a woman who is strong enough to slaughter that animal."

"That only proves your inner strength," he challenged her, "And if you did that to a bear, what is to say what you would do with a man."

The woman looked at him and then slowly whispered, "I really hate bears."

 **End of Chapter Four**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Thank you to reviewers of Chapter Three**

Gothic girl, Hikota, Writer65

 **Response to Reviews**

I'm so glad that you guys are enjoying this and I hope you liked the twist, it will be explained next chapter. Since you guys like the flashbacks so much and I enjoy writing them I'll hopefully be able to include even more.


	5. Chapter 5 - Predators and Prey

**AN:** Thank you everyone for your patience for this chapter it's probably one of the fics that I update the least. I hope that you continue to enjoy it. I've thought about the plot twist in this chapter a lot and decided to use it, hope you like it.

 **Chapter Five – Predators and Prey**

Denahi's look of interest in the woman soon turned to one of horror. He looked at the hide and he kept seeing flashes of how he would feel were he to see Kenai that way. His younger brother might get on his nerves but the animal hide was not what he wanted to think about. A lot of people in this area really hated bears and he could understand that point of view. Bears sometimes attacked because they didn't understand were scared. Bears would steal fish and food because they were hungry. Bears were different from people and the only reason he could understand was that he had been blessed with that.

He had lost his brother when his brother had decided that he was better off with fur and walking on four paws rather than two feet but he still remembered the feelings of being with his brothers. "Do you," he said as he felt something choking him from the inside, "The bear…what do you do with its body?" he asked and the woman turned to him.

"What do you mean?" she asked and Denahi shook his head not sure what he was really asking. "You mean the trade? Bear skin coats are one thing that they could possibly be used for," he stated and Denahi shook his head. He could remember those days when Kenai was too tired and because Sitka had been unable to, he had given the sleepy Kenai a ride on his back where his arm had draped across his shoulder. He put a hand to his shoulder, his subconscious controlling his movements.

"You look as if you've seen a ghost," she told him. "Listen, if you want to go with me on a bear hunt."

"A bear…hunt?" he asked her and she nodded. "You mean that you…you go hunting for bears routinely?" he was starting to feel sick, sweat was covering his forehead and he was scared. He had never really met the bears that Kenai had made friends with – well, he had met Koda of course but in Kenai's mind, was the murder of other bears the same as the murder of humans had been. Wait, what if in Kenai's mind it was as okay to kill humans as it was to kill bears when _he_ was human.

Denahi felt as if he was going to throw up.

"Bear meat is good for digestion," the woman said and Denahi blinked hard and turned his attention to her. He couldn't protest what she was saying without looking like an idiot and he couldn't beg for her not to hurt Kenai without sounding like a lunatic. They didn't know the story here and he had never felt more separated from his brother.

"I don't want to eat a bear," Denahi coughed as he looked down, his mind trying to come up with the answers to how they could all exist peacefully. He knew how good it felt to hunt an animal, he had done that when he was younger but with the departure of his brothers he wanted to find other options. It was Kenai who had given him this chance to see the world differently.

"I can't shame you. I understand your way of thinking," Denahi told the woman. "I thank you for your offers of generosity but I feel that I need to leave this place," he said as he looked around nervously and the woman approached him.

"Are you a bear whisperer?" she asked, "You know, unlike us humans, bears don't have feelings, they only act based on their primal instincts, do whatever their bodies and minds are telling them. Bears aren't civil, they are monsters."

"Maybe we're the monsters," Denahi whispered, "We're the monsters for thinking that way," he turned and ran in the opposite direction. Even if he didn't locate Kenai, he needed for the fear in his body to stop. He ran until he felt that he had somehow run out of his body and he dropped down next to a lake, panting and trying to get himself together. He saw an eagle before him in the mist and then felt a golden light upon him and it turned dark again.

…

…

He just couldn't seem to get his breath, the way that he kept looking up at the world and then feeling pushed down was a strain to Denahi and he wondered if this was how his prey felt after he had wounded the. It was supposed to help the balance of the environment to eliminate some creatures but he felt as if he had been looking at the problem all wrong. Men had powers other animals didn't have and as he tried to push himself up, he found that his back legs were a lot shorter and skinnier and he stared at his arms. Grey paws.

What had happened to him!? Where was he!? Was this what Kenai had felt like when he had been transformed into a bear. If Kenai had been transformed into a bear then…

"I'm not going to hurt you," he heard his brother say to him though Kenai was talking as if he didn't recognize him. Shouldn't he though? Wasn't there a connection as brothers.

"I'm not a wolf," Denahi said and Kenai's eyes widened. Denahi realized that these weren't hands on him but the big paw of a bear. Bears didn't eat wolves, did they? Wasn't it usually the other way around? No. He was a wolf of wisdom, he had to use his wisdom to figure this situation out. "I'm…I don't know how I got this way."

"Join the club," Kenai whispered as he managed to get his head under Denahi's body and he tossed the wolf onto his back. "Did you piss someone off? You must have or otherwise I'm not sure why you would be in this state," he said and Denahi looked around.

"I saw an eagle so would I be wrong in saying that this is what Sitka wanted?" Denahi asked as his eyes adjusted to the world around him. He lay still on Kenai's back as the bear brought him to a cave. He gently moved so that Denahi could slide off of him.

"Are you hurt?" he finally asked and since the conversation from earlier had come to an abrupt end, Denahi wasn't too sure if Kenai was actually speaking to him. He looked at his paws as he stretched out before shaking his head. He didn't feel hurt, different, well of course he felt different but not hurt.

"I never knew how animals felt about man," he said before closing his eyes. "I mean, if I had really thought about it then I should have known, I should have been more aware. Why wasn't I aware, Kenai?"

"I wasn't aware either. When you have power and are the predator, you are often looking up and trying to move forward and be bigger and better, you rarely look at those below you and you don't really understand them if you do. I've learned the role of human hate and self-indulgence the hard way. Maybe this is the only way that you'll be able to learn the things that you set out to learn," he suggested.

Denahi sighed before looking out into the moonlight, "You really think that you'd want to have a wolf travel with you, I haven't seen many wolf-bear budding friendships."

Kenai hummed before he lay down besides Denahi and smiled at him, his grin widening. "Hey, we don't need to start a friendship, all right? We have something even stronger that is going to be able to keep us together. We're brothers and I'll help you find a way to return human," he tried to assure his big brother and Denahi sighed.

"Thank you," he said before smiling, "Little brother."

 **End of Chapter Five**

 **Thank you for reading**

 **Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Four**

CaptainUmaGreen, Gothic girl, Guest, KenaiandKodaBrot, Pachemeru, Writer65,

 **Author Response:**

There will be answers to all of the questions posed but that isn't the last time you'll see Kenai as a human, it'll be explained when the Denahi is a wolf thing is further explained. Thank you for the support


	6. Chapter 6 - Name Your Price

**AN:** Another short chapter but I really enjoyed writing this one. I hope you guys enjoyed it too. It surprises me the number of people who choose to read this story so thank you.

 **Chapter Six – Name Your Price**

"Come on," the young Kenai said as he shook Denahi's shoulder and looked at his older brothers. He had begged for them to take him out to be in the wilderness and now he was crying, wanting someone to play with him or something. Denahi tried hard to go back to sleep. "I think it'll be better if we keep warm."

"Yeah, snuggling up together is going to be the only way to keep warm," Denahi said as he tried to push Kenai away. "I was never begging Sitka to sleep next to me. I'm not a girl, you know. It's not like Mom's here," he told him and Sitka sighed as he looked at his younger brothers. He too was trying to get some sleep although he was keeping very aware of their surroundings so that nothing happened to them.

"Don't you think that if you let Kenai use your warmth," Sitka told Denahi, "that will provide warmth for you as well. Many animals will actually curl up together for warmth."

"See," Kenai said feeling proud that his brother agreed with him. If it was Sitka who said it then Denahi couldn't argue with him. Sitka was the wisest and strongest of the three of them. He had the authority. "If Sitka says it then it must be true."

"Sitka was talking about animals," Denahi told him with his eyes closed. "Different things, are you an animal Kenai?" he asked as he kicked him with his foot to get him away.

"No," Kenai pouted before going to the cave wall. "I'll keep watch then," he told them and Sitka reached out for him.

"Why don't you come next to me," he offered before sitting up. "I'm keeping watch anyway," he said as he went to sit at the side of the cave and gestured for Kenai to rest his head on his lap. Kenai did and Sitka covered him with a hide. Denahi laughed but his face softened as he watched his two brothers. These types of moments were still special to him. These family bonding moments.

…..

…..

Denahi yawned as he felt the larger body of his little brother and pushed his head into the soft brown fur. Bears slept deeper than humans did and he was starting to wonder how he could wake this new Kenai up if there was an emergency. After having that dream of the first time Kenai had accompanied him and Sitka, it was nice to see him sleeping peacefully and to be able to enjoy his warmth.

He had grown up well and their parents would have been proud of the strength that Kenai now had. He had taken on a huge change and responsibility and he had done it for Koda. Still, if there were people who made a living out of hunting bears, it was a more difficult life for Kenai than Denahi had let himself believe. He felt sickened at the way he couldn't protect his little brother.

He looked at his tail and his paws before scratching behind his ear. Maybe he should try to learn the differences between wolves and humans as dumb as that sounded. He was getting some experience in life and he had a feeling that he wouldn't stay this way forever. He saw a puddle on the floor and sniffed it before lapping it up. He could feel someone watching him and looked ahead at Kenai whose eyes had widened.

"Did I wake you up?" he asked as Kenai lifted his head and attempted to look around the cave. He shook his head as he realized that it was Denahi that he was talking to. He was safe. That meant that he was safe if it was Denahi inside the body of that wolf.

"No, sometimes dreams wake me up," he said before yawning. "Are you doing okay there? I know that when I first became a bear, I was terrified. I just wanted to change back as soon as possible and I would have changed back, you know, if it wasn't for Koda."

"I think I'm doing okay," Denahi nodded. "It's only temporary, right?"

"If you choose it to be," Kenai said before closing his eyes softly and rolled onto his side. "I think that I'm only able to be a big brother to Koda because I have two great examples for myself." Kenai yawned and stretched a paw out in front of him. "I saw that bear hide," he shivered and Denahi nodded, he already knew this. "What would your price be?"

"My price?" Denahi cocked his head to the side and then settled down again, wrapping his tail around him and marveling at how he could do that so easily. "I'm not going to buy a bear hide. I would consider that a huge insult, it's not as if I haven't changed since Sitka's death and your transformation. I would never do that. The chances of you visiting me if I owned a bear hide would drop to nonexistent and I want you to visit me."

"Not for the hide," Kenai whispered slowly, "Would there ever be a price that would cause you to…sell a bear hide," he said being very careful with his words and Denahi's eyes widened. He stared at him before realizing that Kenai was actually asking his brother how much _his_ life was worth.

"Never," Denahi shook his head. "Once I get back to being human, I'm going to try to figure out some ways to stop bear hunting to create a safe place for you. I would never ever sell you, are you listening to me, Kenai?" Denahi asked and Kenai sat up. He looked at the wolf and saw the seriousness that Denahi was using. Yes, maybe it was the wrong question to ask of him. It wasn't a very trusting question.

"I thought that was the case," Kenai yawned but Denahi shook his head.

"I need you to promise me that you know I would never do something like that. Even if it meant giving my own life for yours. Whether you are a bear or a man, you are still my brother. I would never do anything that would risk your life. You believe me, right? Promise me that you know that I -"

"I know," Kenai nodded before lying down again. "Come on, curl up to me, you're going to be a lot less cold if you take advantage of my warmth," he said and Denahi approached him slowly, starting to sink down next to him and push his snout into Kenai's large belly.

"Honestly, you think that I change from being your brother because of a change in species," he said with a harsh tone feeling somewhat judged. He would never do anything to risk the life of a family member. He was hurt that Kenai might even believe that to be the case.

…..

…

"He's asleep?" Denahi asked as he saw Kenai snoring and smiled, he turned to Sitka and sat up. His brothers were together and that was most important but somehow them being together made Denahi feel a little torn between his image and his desires. Sitka reached out to him and Denahi shook his head.

"No," he replied as he stared at the ground, "It wouldn't be cool. You'd tell everyone in the village."

"You have my word that I won't," Sitka told him and Denahi sighed before going over to them and sat down beside his brother. He awkwardly let his body rest against Sitka's feeling protected by his family.

"You better keep that word," Denahi told him and Sitka laughed. Denhai soon had his eyes closed and felt himself able to slip into a comfortable sleep. Maybe it wasn't cool to rely on your brothers for everything but it definitely felt better than being alone.

 **End of Chapter Six**

 **Thank you for reading, reviews are appreciated**

 **Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Five**

CaptainUmaGreen, Gothic girl, Loki Magic 18, Pachemaru


	7. Chapter 7 - Travel in Packs

**Chapter Seven – Travel in Packs**

Denahi could smell food, well he could smell blood that had the potential to become food. He turned to Kenai who was staring at him, having obviously smelled the same thing. "So, shall we?" Denahi asked with a cock of his head and Kenai smiled finding this a little funnier than Denahi had expected.

"I…" he said slowly before shaking his head, "I don't really think that you're ready for the chase," he admitted and Denahi stared at him. When they had both been human, Kenai had always seemed impressed by his tactics and his knowledge. However now it seemed that all of those skills that Denahi had honed as a human were being disrespected.

"Come on," Denahi said with a cocky smile, "Wolf or not. I'm pretty sure…"

"There are risks," Kenai told him. "I had trouble surviving on four legs at first too but I know how to do it now. I'll bring something back for us," he told him and Denahi sighed. Maybe Kenai had a point. When you were used to fighting one way and hunting on two feet, it was most likely too difficult to take the position of an animal and even moose fought back. He still wanted to do something to help though. Maybe if he went where humans were, he could scavenge.

"I'll be back," Kenai told him, "You stay right here."

Denahi nodded before slowly settling down on his paws. Maybe he wasn't the eldest brother but he was older than Kenai and now he felt as if there was a role-reversal taking place. He didn't want to be the one taken care of, he wanted to make sure that Kenai was well cared for.

That made Denahi question what had led Kenai to not visit him any longer. There was the idea of disrespecting the bear and of finding bear as a wild animal to hunt but he had tried to spread the story and he doubted that Kenai would have attacked anyone. He whined softly before finding another wolf to approach him.

"Hey there, cutie," he heard a female voice as the wolf rubbed against his side and Denahi stood up in shock. There was a female wolf hitting on him. Knowing that he was actually human, it was too weird and too different that this female was attracted to him. If he was in his real form then this would be counted as bestiality.

"Hi, I'm….I'm not looking for companionship," he said quickly.

In this form, Denahi knew that he couldn't have physical relations with a human because that would be wrong but from a mental point of view, having any kind of attraction to a wolf was inappropriate. These were animals. He couldn't be attracted to an animal despite his younger brother's place in this world.

"Aww, you're shy," the female wolf commented. "What's your name anyway?" she asked and he backed away from her. She moved forward, nuzzling him with her nose.

"You don't need to be afraid," she said before bowing her head, "My name is Reina. I'm not from around these parts either," she licked his cheek and Denahi flinched internally. How could this wolf be approaching him in this manner? His eyes widened and he shook his head, taking a few steps backwards.

"You don't need to be shy, I can get you to know this land. This is near where our community is anyway," she said and Denahi looked around. He wanted to wait for Kenai. He wasn't really a wolf and so a wolf community wasn't appealing to him, spending more time with his younger brother was what interested him.

"Thank you, Reina," Denahi shook his head. "I'll be okay."

Those were the sentiments that Denahi had in his heart for that moment at least but the next thing that he heard caused ice cold waves to ripple through his body. A bear was roaring and it wasn't in a good way. Denahi looked at Reina and shook his head.

"I can't stay," he told her.

"A bear died," Reina said and Denahi felt his eyes widen. That couldn't be the sound of Kenai's death, if it was that sound then there was no way that Denahi would ever forgive himself. He didn't want to imagine that Kenai had died just because he had listened to him and stayed in hiding. "It's no big deal, in fact if the humans leave the carcass it should give us good food."

"I don't eat bear," Denahi said as his mind started to get foggy and the only thing he knew was that he needed to get to Kenai's side as soon as possible. His little brother was suffering, it was his responsibility to take care of him just as when they had all been human.

"And yet you'll risk your life," Reina commented and Denahi looked at her.

"There are some things that you will never be able to understand," he tried to tell her. He hadn't meant those words to come out in that manner but this was too important. Bounding across the land, he saw blood and that made his eyes widen as he turned from side to side to get a better view of the situation. He then saw what he was hoping not to see. Kenai unable to move and facing the end of a musket. He saw the same woman who had claimed to hate bears and want to murder them and he tackled her, pushing her down.

He didn't want to hurt anyone but protecting his younger brother was more important than anything this hunter wanted from him. Denahi growled, snapping his teeth as the woman looked frightened. He had to get help. He saw the gun pointed towards his forehead but Kenai swiped at her arm, making sure not to scrape her and attack her and the musket fell down.

Just as she was reaching to grab it, Denahi felt that they weren't alone and he saw wolves from each side approaching her. He backed away, checking the bloody wounds that Kenai had sustained. His eyes snapped open. He couldn't be dead. Kenai couldn't die, these wounds couldn't be fatal.

Denahi shook his head. He couldn't afford to think this way. He had to come up with a plan to save him.

"Get lost," one of the wolves snapped to the woman who was having a hard time understanding them. Another one just continued to growl at her to frighten her off and with her leaving, the wolves turned to look at Kenai. Denahi steadied himself, taking them all in. If they were to try to kill Kenai then they would have to kill him as well. He stood with his paws firmly on the ground.

"The bear is mine," he said as he stood protectively beside him. "This bear won't hurt any of you. He's my friend, he's my family," he said and the leader looked at him seeing how serious he was about this. He looked to the wound before shaking his head. If the bear did survive he would soon die from the injuries. It wasn't worth starting things off on a bad foot with this wolf who had the guts to become part of his pack.

"So," he said as he turned his head, "The bear is yours."

"Pacha," one of the lesser wolves in the pack said and Pacha shook his head telling his underlings to remain silent. He was the alpha male and as the alpha, he was to be listened to. Many wolves didn't have the guts to face down a gun but this one might make an excellent body guard for him.

"The bear is his, what's your name?" Pacha asked as he studied Denahi more carefully.

"Denahi," Denahi told them as he still stood protectively in front of Kenai. Had this been the reason for Kenai's isolation? Had he been wounded before? Had humans scared him off, he had said something of that manner, hadn't he?

"Well, come see me tomorrow night," Pacha said before turning to where the moon was casting a glimmer on a nearby lake, "Over there," he said and Denahi nodded slowly. He would promise anything if they allowed him to make sure that Kenai was all right. Kenai's protection came first.

"Excellent," Pacha said, "Let's go guys," he said before turning away and Denahi nudged Kenai with his forehead.

"Are you okay?" he asked. The cave that Kenai shared with Koda wasn't too far away and maybe Koda would be there. Koda would be more help than him anyway.

…..

…..

"Steady," Denahi said as he brought Kenai back home, it had been a fair walk with some stops in between but Kenai had seemed to improve with every rest period. He saw the bear starting to fall asleep and hoped that he would wake up this time. Denahi heard the sound of someone enter the cave and turned to see Koda who was shock at his appearance before he saw his brother.

"Kenai!" he yelled alarmed, "Get away from him! What did you do to him!?" he asked and Denahi backed away.

"Koda, it's me…it's Denahi, I brought Kenai here to get some help," he said before looking at the cub. "Do you think that you could help us?"

 **End of Chapter Seven**

 **Thank you for reading, reviews are appreciated**

 **Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Six**

Guest (x2), Writer65


	8. Chapter 8 - Medicinal Flowers

**Chapter Eight: Medicinal Flowers**

Koda froze as he looked at the wolf. Usually he'd be more suspicious about this. Wolves weren't as bad as humans but they could still be sly and sneaky and harm bears. Kenai was hurt right now and it looked like it had been done by a wolf. Koda moved forwards before checking the wound. "You need to get some of those big leaves and some of the white flowers and…and then there's something about those reeds at the riverbank."

"Flowers, leaves, reeds," Denahi repeated as he saw the way that Kenai was in pain. He couldn't stand seeing his brother like this. He had gotten used to his brother being a bear but a hunted animal was something that he couldn't deal with. He had forgotten the dangers of the animal kingdom and his goal now was helping his brother.

"Yeah but you have to get them real quickly or the infection might spread," Koda said as he looked at Denahi in desperation and with tears in his eyes. Denahi nodded. "Actually, I'll go. I'm gonna grab something to stop the wound and then I'll be back. I need you to stay with Kenai."

"I'm not going anywhere," Denahi said firmly as he heard the painful growl. He turned to Kenai and gently placed a paw on the top of his head. "I'm here," he promised and saw Koda dash out. He had to trust in the young bear. Bears took care of their own kind and though he wanted to say that he was closer to Kenai, in this recent past Koda had more in common with him.

"Do you remember," Kenai laughed, "When I almost," he coughed and Denahi nuzzled him affectionately, wanting nothing more than to ease the pain that Kenai was going through, "I almost fell off the side of that cliff and you and Sitkha helped me."

"You had me really worried," Denahi replied. "I had trouble catching my breath for hours. I had nightmares for weeks," he said and then saw Koda scamper back with a large leaf and some flowers in his mouth.

"Get him onto this and then the flowers, try to get the middle part like this," Koda said as he managed to get the petals and stem off of the flower and smooshed it up with his paw. "This helps the pain and the infection and there's some more but I'm going to have to go further for that."

Denahi watched the young bear before going over to the flowers. He followed Koda's lead in making the natural balm. There were many ways and medicines that humans used to treat wounds but he didn't have the luxury of that. He just needed to continue in trying to help his brother. He heard Kenai roar as he placed his paw on the wound.

"I know it stings but you have to face the pain to get better," Denahi said as he nodded to Koda, the gratitude in his eyes making it to the younger bear's heart. After applying the medicine and covering the wound with the leaf, Denahi settled in to his brother's side, letting his tail brush against Kenai's larger body.

"Maybe I should stay here with you," he commented and Kenai opened his eyes and shook his head.

"You don't belong here. I only chose this life for Koda. I am responsible for the death of his mother. I'm his big brother," Kenai said and Denahi was scared that if Kenai were to fall asleep then there would be no waking him this time. He sighed and put his paws in front of him.

"And I'm _your_ older brother," he tried to remind him. He would have to think very carefully about this. He had honestly never wanted to live as an animal like Kenai did but the idea of losing his brother scared him more than anything. He wanted to keep in contact with his family and Kenai was the most important member of his family. He was his brother.

"I'll come and visit you…if I survive," Kenai said and Denahi looked at him sharply.

"Don't you quit on me," he told him. "You rest, I'll keep watch," he tried to assure him and Kenai nodded. Denahi looked at him fiercely, proving that he wasn't going to give up on the bear. "Rest but don't go to sleep," Denahi said and Kenai watched him with a weak smile. He nodded again.

"Thanks," he said and Denahi looked at him.

"Of course," he said hoping that he could keep guard until Koda came back. Then he had to think about how he would face Pacha and his pack. He had to go back to them, that was the deal. He would have to become one of the pack but for right now he had to care about his own group, his own important animal. His brother would always be top priority for him even when he eventually did become a human again.

…

…

Denahi couldn't keep his mind away from Kenai but he trusted Koda with his care and treatment. Koda was young but he loved Kenai almost as much as Denahi did and so he would take care of him. Okay, maybe they loved Kenai the same amount but Denahi took pride in actually being biologically related to the bear.

As he saw Pacha, Denahi took a slow breath and walked over to him. "Hello," he said in a formal manner with a bow of his head and then bowed down to him as he lowered his two front legs and then rose as he felt Pacha nip his ear.

"Do you hear those sounds?" he asked and Denahi looked around. He could hear wildlife and animals ready for hunting. He felt sick at how he would have to spend at least the next few hours as the wolf that he had turned into whilst knowing full well that he was a human. Still, there were things that were more important to him than his sanity.

For one, there was Kenai. He had chosen to meet up with Pacha again so that he could save Kenai's life and he would have to give into his animal instincts to do so. At least he wouldn't be harming either Kenai or Koda.

"Where is everyone else?" Denahi asked and Pacha smiled to him.

"You're a little quicker than the rest of them. I dare say more intelligent as well," Pacha circled around him, studying him. "You have a decent build and I know that you can fight," he said as he bore his large teeth. Denahi sighed before seeing some of the other wolves coming towards them. "I'm making it your duty to guard me. You are to run with me and listen to orders. You are _my_ bodyguard."

"Yes, sir," Denahi said as he felt other wolves studying him. Was being a bodyguard seen as being a big deal? Was it something that would prove threatening to the other wolves? He hadn't wanted to seem like he was threatening. There was no joy in that. Still, what joy would come from the hunt.

"Are you ready to go, alpha?" one of the other wolves asked.

Pacha looked around before seeing Reina moving forwards. "You coming on this one, female?" he asked and Reina looked at Denahi closely before winking.

"Just try to stop me," she growled and Denahi felt himself split in his feelings. One part of him couldn't describe the joy that seeing Reina brought him but the other half knew that she wasn't human. If he didn't plan on staying as a wolf, was that still bestiality and why did he feel such a strong compulsion to commit that crime.

 **End of Chapter Eight**

 **Thank you for reading, reviews are appreciated**

 **Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Seven**

Gothic girl, Guest (x2), LokiGreenMagic,


	9. Chapter 9 - Tonight's Dinner

**Chapter Nine – Tonight's Dinner**

" _What are you saying, Kenai?" Denahi asked as he looked at his younger brother and shook his head rather annoyed. Sitkha was sighing but this wasn't something that Denahi wanted to just let slide. Their dinner had gone missing and it had been Kenai's responsibility today. "I'm starving already. Are you sure that you checked the net?"_

" _What we can work on is tomorrow's dinner, Denahi," Sitkha said as he turned to the middle brother and Denahi shook his head._

" _That doesn't help. We need to be able to eat in a daily manner. I mean, right now it's just us but imagine if this one were to ever have a family. They'd starve. Completely run out of food. I don't think there's any way that a simple apology can make up for that," Denahi told them and Kenai shivered. He hated this judgement especially from his brother._

" _I'll go catch more food then. I'll go…strike down a buffalo!" Kenai responded as he stretched his arms out and Sitkha sighed before shaking his head. "I will," the youngest brother said as he grabbed to a spear and Denahi laughed but Sitkha put a hand on Kenai's shoulder._

" _You must be wise in this. Going out hunting when you are not strong in your mind is asking for even greater trouble. We might still be able to get some salmon for tonight but that requires planning and forethought. We need to think of how we can all get fed," Sitkha told them and Denahi rolled his eyes._

" _Great job," he said mockingly and Kenai frowned. He wanted to go hunt something for them all to eat and be the hero, not the loser that Denahi was making him out to be. He wanted to prove his worth but he knew that right now all he could do was follow his brothers. He threw the spear to the side and helped Sitkha in setting up the net again._

…

…

"Salmon," Kenai said in his sleep as he tried to move away from the dream of when he used to catch food with his brothers. He had been a human at that point and for some reason it had just seemed so much easier. Maybe it was the joy of having been with his brothers that was making him remember it more fondly. Hunting with Koda was fun as well and scooping up the fish with his paw did feel nice when he caught a big one but it wasn't the same.

"Salmon," he mumbled again and felt paws coming over to him.

"Salmon!?" Koda asked as he prodded Kenai with his paw. "Did you say salmon? We can eat salmon? How 'bout I get you a ton of salmon, I mean maybe that would help you feel better. One time I saw this bear eat a whole river full of salmon," he exaggerated and Kenai laughed at him. Koda's eyes widened and he laughed too.

"You must be feeling all right to be talking about all of the salmon," he replied and Kenai watched him with a glimmer in his eyes. Yes. He did enjoy the times he had been with Koda and they had been eating salmon.

"I feel a little better," Kenai told him and Koda let out a huge sigh of relief.

"Good. 'Cause I was all kinds of worried about you. I kept trying to tell myself not to worry, you know. Don't worry because Kenai's doing okay but boy, you had me worried," Koda laughed and Kenai watched him. He could enjoy the moments with his new brother but that didn't take away the loneliness he had from being without Denahi and Sitkha.

"Denahi," Kenai panicked as he lifted his head and Koda scrambled over to him.

"No, no, no," he said and Kenai blinked at the little bear. "I've been told that it's my job to look after you and Denahi said, he said that he's going to be able to take care of things from the outside and he left me responsible for taking care of you and I think I'll take the best care of you."

"You do.." Kenai smiled happily, "You do take the best care of me."

…

…..

Denahi could see teeth, he could see blood, he could smell the desperation of wolves wanting to kill whatever they could as a means of survival. This was what animals did in the wild and being a part of it made him feel more respectful. He moved aside before feeling something charging at him and he just blindly went by instinct. He jumped upon the yak or moose or whatever it was and started to madly bite the animal until he had subdued it.

He saw a few more animals and went to them, his teeth snapping as if he didn't have control of himself and he felt the rush and the pain and the want and the chase. Everything was all encapsulated in the tense body and his breath, his racing breath that continually managed to steady itself.

As he came to his senses, Denahi saw what he and the other wolves had killed. He had meant to show peace and respect but he was killing without a known cause. He bowed his head and went to the water. On one hand, he could bring back one of the dead animal carcasses to his brother and Koda and give them something that would hopefully help Kenai gain strength but on the other hand, more lives were lost because he had believed it good to give into his animalistic urges.

As he lapped the water, Reina came over to him. "You….you were pretty good out there but you needn't show off so much," she commented and Denahi watched her. He sighed.

"I didn't know that I was showing off, I just went for it," he said and Reina laughed. She shook her head as she licked the blood from her own lips. She turned to him, eyeing him up. Denahi was quite a handsome wolf and he did show agility and promise in his form but he was unlike all of the other wolves that she had met and she had a hard time figuring out why that was the case. She paused before hearing Pacha's voice.

"You were a killing _machine_ ," he said and Denahi paused as he side eyed him. He wasn't sure whether to take that as a compliment or not but he had the feeling that going against Pacha would lead to his painful demise. "You're coming back to sleep with us tonight. Somewhere warm."

"We all snuggle together," Reina said and Denahi took a few steps back and shook his head.

"No, I don't mind hunting with you but I…I'm a lone wolf," he laughed. He kept trying to think of the right words to use because telling them the truth about how he used to be a human was not smart. He had to be wise and figure things out slowly instead of act out of impulse. That was what Sitkha had tried to get both he and Kenai to realize.

"You sure?" Reina asked and Pacha chuckled at that.

"You are some strange wolf," he said before looking around and gestured to one of the elk that Denahi was seeing for the first time under a new light. Amongst all of the fighting, he couldn't get a close look at the animal and now he was seeing the dead elk's face and felt a rush of guilt through him. "Take the small one back with you. I expect to see you again tomorrow," he said and Denahi nodded before grabbing his kill.

He walked off and Pacha turned to Reina.

"I want you to track him," he commanded and Reina nodded, "He's a strange one. See what he does, see where he goes."

Reina nodded and waited until Denahi was far enough away that he wouldn't be able to sense her. She watched him whilst hiding by the rocks and as he felt that he was standing alone, Reina's eyes widened as a great eagle came down and landed on a rock in front of him. The glowing eagle.

Now that was a kill that Pacha would definitely approve of.

 **End of Chapter Nine**

 **Thank you for reading, reviews are appreciated**

 **Thank you to the reviewers of Chapter Eight**

Guest, Pachemeru, PrinceSpyro


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